National Unity Conference
With Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
An overflow crowd of approximately 1,500 evangelical Christians and Jewish people greeted Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a breakfast held at the J. W. Marriott Hotel in Washington, DC, in April. The group assembled to demonstrate solidarity with Israel in its quest for survival and its God-given right to Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the Jewish state.
Members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives joined Christian and Jewish leaders in welcoming the Prime Minister. Mr. Netanyahu was obviously deeply moved as he responded to the enthusiastic reception he received. In telling of his love for Jerusalem, he expressed what Jewish people the world over have felt across the centuries as they intoned the words, “Next year in Jerusalem!”
Elwood McQuaid was asked to author a Resolution of Solidarity, which he read at the breakfast.
Resolution of Solidarity
Voices United For Israel
Washington, DC
April 7, 1997
We, members and friends of The National Unity Coalition For Israel, give unanimous congratulations and commendation to the people of the State of Israel in their tenacious struggle to survive and flourish in their God-given homeland, Eretz Israel.
We stand firm in the commitment that Jerusalem is the legitimate, undivided capital of the Jewish state, with a 3,000-year union with that city heretofore unknown in the history of humanity. We commend the U.S. Congress for passage of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 and urge immediate implementation of the move of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
While respecting the legitimate rights of all people in the region to live in peace, we call on responsible parties, particularly Israel and the United States, to halt further negotiations with the Palestinian Authority until Chairman Arafat and the PA take concrete steps to implement basic promises made but thus far blatantly disregarded.
Namely:
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Amend the PLO Charter, which calls for the annihilation of Israel.
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Close illegal offices in Jerusalem operated in violation of previous agreements.
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Effectively stop terrorist violence and cease giving the “green light” to violence when contentious issues arise between Israel and the PA.
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Reduce the Palestinian “Police Force” to the size agreed to in the interim agreement.
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Comply with legal obligations, including transfer of terrorist suspects.
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Confiscate illegal arms.
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Demonstrate a commitment to peace as opposed to continual threats to foment a state of war against Israel among Arab states.
We strongly urge that any funding for the Palestinian Authority, planned or in the pipeline, be withheld until compliance is guaranteed.
With due respect and regard for the rights of the Palestinian people and legitimate Arab states in the region, we insist that the basic issue affecting affairs in the Middle East and globally is the survival of the modern State of Israel. Since its rebirth as a nation in 1948, Israel has never posed a threat to any neighbor nation, with the single exception of aggressors. It has contributed enormously to the social and economic welfare of the residents of the region. Israel stands as the single bastion of democracy in the Middle East and therefore remains an invaluable ally to the United States and democracies the world over. Israel holds the key to the future prosperity and social development of the region.
Beyond these obvious indispensable benefits, no people in the history of humanity has a more legitimate right to a place in the ancient land of their fathers. We hold that Israel’s biblical, historical, and moral right to the land is inviolable, and, as a body representing more than 200 organizations of Zionist Christians and Jews, we stand unanimously with the people of Israel and their right, in the words of [their national anthem] “Hatikvah,” “to live in freedom in the land of Zion and Jerusalem.”
(The Resolution was entered into the Congressional Record by Rep. Benjamin Gilman, R-NY.)
